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Sixers center Joel Embiid reiterates he could sit out NBA All-Star Game

A lingering foot ailment sidelined the center in the Sixers’ road victory over the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 21. He’s now played in the following 11 games despite being listed as questionable.

Sixers Joel Embiid before playing the Cavaliers at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Wednesday, February 15, 2023.
Sixers Joel Embiid before playing the Cavaliers at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Wednesday, February 15, 2023.Read moreSteven M. Falk / Staff Photographer

Joel Embiid is still unsure if he’ll play in Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game.

Following Wednesday night’s 118-112 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers, the 76ers center reiterated what he said this past Friday.

“I’m not sure,” Embiid said when asked if he would play in the midseason game in Salt Lake City. “I’m not healthy. I haven’t been healthy for the past three weeks — a month.”

Embiid, 28, has been dealing with left foot soreness.

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The ailment sidelined him in the Sixers’ road victory over the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 21. He’s played in the following 11 games despite being listed as questionable.

“I was trying to get to the All-Star break without missing games and stuff,” he said. “But I feel like I reached a point where I really need to follow the doctor’s advice and miss [some time]. Back then he said I should have been sitting for two weeks.

“I’m going to see how the next few days go and go from there,” Embiid said.

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The center’s goal is to be ready for the final 25 games following the All-Star break and the playoffs, so he’s determined to take care of himself to be in the best position possible to succeed.

Embiid is second in the league in scoring at 33.1 points. He also averages 10.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.5 blocks.

On Feb. 3, he was named the Eastern Conference player of the month for January. It’s the second straight month that he has been selected as the conference’s best player.

The league announced Friday that Embiid, along with the Utah Jazz’s Lauri Markkanen and the Memphis Grizzlies’ Ja Morant, will start in place of sidelined All-Stars Kevin Durant (Phoenix Suns), Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans), and Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors).

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Friday’s news enabled Embiid to be named an All-Star starter for the sixth consecutive season. The seventh-year veteran did not play in the 2021 All-Star Game in Atlanta because of COVID-19 contact tracing.

“My focus is on getting healthy,” Embiid said. “I’ve been having this lingering foot issue, according to the doctors, which needs a lot of rest, staying off my feet. So like I said, the focus is on winning, especially getting ready for the second half of the season and playoffs.

“So I’m focusing on winning a championship.”